San Antonio Zoo's only elephant will remain, despite relocation rule

By Rebecca Salinas :
July 16, 2014
: Updated: July 17, 2014 8:05am

The San Antonio Zoo's Lucky has lived alone since the death of her penmate, Boo, early last year.

Photo By William Luther/San Antonio Express-News

Lucky and Boo, the San Antonio Zoo's Asian Elephants, are seen in the zoo's elephant enclosure in this April 10, 2012 aerial photo.

Photo By Timothy Tai/San Antonio Express-News

Zookeeper Randee Gonzalez (not shown) sprays water onto Lucky, a 54-year-old female elephant, on Thursday, June 12, 2014, at the San Antonio Zoo. Lucky has been the only elephant at the zoo since her companion, Boo, died in 2013.

Photo By Timothy Tai/San Antonio Express-News

A zookeeper sprays water into the mouth of Lucky, the aging elephant at the San Antonio Zoo. Readers continue to implore the zoo to release the elephant to a sanctuary in Tennessee.

Photo By Timothy Tai/San Antonio Express-News

Zookeeper Randee Gonzalez sprays water onto Lucky, a 54-year-old female elephant, on Thursday, June 12, 2014, at the San Antonio Zoo. Though Lucky has lived alone since 2013, she enjoys the company of humans, zoo officials say.

Elephants are majestic creatures, aren't they? Click through to see 12 fun facts about elephants.

Photo By Marvin Pfeffier/San Antonio Express-News

1. There are two types of elephants: Asian and African. Asian elephants are smaller than their African cousin. Asian elephants also have small, rounded ears, while African elephants have longer ears that look somewhat like the continent of Africa.

Photo By Billy Calzada/San Antonio Express-News

2. An elephant’s trunk is used for smelling, breathing, trumpeting, drinking and grabbing. An elephant’s trunk alone has 100,000 different muscles.

Photo By KIM JAE-HWAN/AFP/Getty Images

3. African elephants have tusks that can be used to dig and strip bark from trees for a nice snack. Males also use their tusks to fight with each other.

Photo By Robin Jerstad/For the Express-News

4. Elephants are herbivores, so they eat roots, grass, fruit and bark, and an adult can eat up to 300 pounds of food in a day.

Photo By Delcia Lopez/San Antonio Express-News file photo

5. Unlike in the cartoons, elephants do not like peanuts. They do not eat peanuts in the wild, and zookeepers do not feed elephants peanuts in captivity.

7. At birth, an elephant weighs about 200 pounds, and can stand at 3 feet tall.

Photo By MARVIN PFEIFFER/Marvin Pfeiffer/ Express-News

8. Elephants have passed the mirror test, meaning they can recognize their reflection in mirrors. Dolphins, great apes and magpies also have passed the mirror test.

Photo By ROLAND WEIHRAUCH/AFP/Getty Images

9. Elephants aren’t one for a nice sun tan; they can actually get bad sunburn. To protect themselves, elephants throw sand on their backs and head to help block the sun. To protect their young, elephants stand over their young ones while sleeping.

Photo By AP

11. Female elephants can live in groups of about 15 related animals, all led by a matriarch. The matriarch is usually the oldest elephant in the group, and her experience guides the group’s migration and daily patterns.

Photo By Kye R. Lee/Associated Press

12. On the other hand, male elephants leave the matriarch groups between the ages 12 and 15. The elephants then form an all-male group. If times get tough, the elephants will form a linear hierarchy, which helps them avoid injuries from competition.

SAN ANTONIO -- At first glance, it is visible that Lucky, the elephant at the San Antonio Zoo, is getting old. The Asian elephant has called San Antonio home for more than 50 years, but if it were not for her age, she may have been forced to leave the zoo.

Zoos across the nation are relocating their elephants after an updated rule by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums requires zoos with less than three elephants to either add to the group, or relocate the pachyderms by September 2016.

The rule falls under the association, which accredits the San Antonio Zoo, Standards for Elephant Management and Care policy, which states elephants should have company because they are social animals.

"The reason behind it was to, as closely as possible, mimic the social group status in the wild, in our zoos," said Rob Vernon, senior vice president of external affairs at the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

Vernon said a rule recommending zoos have more than two elephants always has been in place. But now, it is being required for zoos to hold a minimum of three females, two males or three elephants of mixed gender. If zoos do not meet the requirements, the zoo must relocate their elephant or apply for a variance.

That is the case with the San Antonio Zoo, Director Steve McCusker said, because relocating Lucky may kill her and "there's no right thing to do with her except leave her where she is." He said at around 55 years old, travel causes stress on her old age, even though she is in good health.

Lucky will stay in San Antonio until she dies, McCusker said, which he predicts will happen in a few years. Lucky is on her last set of teeth, meaning it is harder for her to eat. Therefore, zookeepers chop Alfalfa hay and water grain to make a mush so it is easier for her to eat.

"Don't take that to mean that she's not healthy, she's fine, but she wouldn't be if she weren't here. She'd be really hungry, because she would be trying to eat tree bark when she can't even chew jelly beans," he said.

McCusker said the zoo does not plan to add elephants while she is alive because it will make her uncomfortable.

"She's never been kind of a herd elephant. She's always been kind of a weird elephant that would rather be alone or with people than other elephants," he said. "That's really the philosophy and science behind why we have kept her."

McCusker said Lucky has always kept to herself, even when there were elephants to keep her company. She has been by herself since her penmate, Boo, died at the age of 59 in March 2013.

"She has never had that herd behavior that elephants learn as they grow up," he said, because Lucky has always been around humans.

With more than 1 million visitors a year, the San Antonio Zoo has received complaints about Lucky's isolation, but McCusker said he has explained Lucky's unique preferences multiple times.

Zoo-goers getting a glimpse of Lucky this week did not seem to have concerns over her isolation either.

Crystal Rodriguez said she and her family often visit the zoo, and her children only pay attention to Lucky's "long nose" and "laziness."

Meanwhile, Jessica Mendoza from Houston, tried to get a "selfie" with Lucky, who she says is her favorite animal.

Because she is by herself, Lucky has access to her own acre with a hay net, shade structures, tires and a pond.

"She's probably the most pampered elephant in the state," McCusker said. "Because she's alone, she gets so much attention."

After Lucky passes away, the zoo will make room for three young African elephants. The current enclosure would be enlarged to include a larger pool and more turf. Also, stalls and bedrooms will be added to the current barn.

McCusker said any elephants entering the zoo in the future will be African elephants in order to be consistent with the zoo's new Africa Live exhibit.